Hello.

Welcome to Resource: Art Education! If you would like to be a contributor to the site, please contact Ashlee at amferraina@gmail.com. You can either request permission to add posts yourself or send a post, link, idea...etc. for the blogmaster to add for you!

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

The Lazy Student

     I have been a substitute at a local school district for about a month now. I am a district sub, so I will go to any building and grade level with in the district. The biggest issue I have noticed, no matter what the grade level, is lazy students. That's not only my opinion, the students actually say "I'm too lazy to do this"!!!!
     Too lazy...that's your excuse? You can't write your name because you're too lazy. You can't study for 5 minutes for test I'm giving later, because you're too lazy? This is unbelievable.

     What do you say to that? 

    I don't have the answer yet. But I'm working on it. Basically, I tell them that laziness is not a valid excuse. They have to complete the work and complete it well. This may work about 5% of the time, but at least I have annexed the lazy excuse and am showing no tolerance for the whining. What else should I do?
Where does it start?

     I'm going to assume that we, as an adult population, have started this problem. I feel that saying "I'm lazy" is a learned trait. Students are probably hearing a parent complain, "I'm too lazy to drive you to a friend's house today.". Or, someone is telling this child, "You're too lazy to go outside, you just want to play video games." and that is the end of the discussion. If we don't want students to use the excuse that they are too lazy to do anything, we need to change our own vocabulary and, as always, be mindful of how we are teaching them to perceive themselves. 
     A five year old should not think she is too lazy to accomplish anything at school. Lazy is a mood, a choice, lazy is not a health issue, never a valid excuse. 

Further Reading

     I found a nice responds to this problem at NEA Public Groups -- How To Deal With Lazy Students. I really enjoyed Barb's comments about looking at herself and her teaching styles as the problem. She suggested that we create opportunities for students to be in charge, give them teacher responsibilities. She also stressed the importance of scaffolding lessons and activities so that students are able to accomplish them, in the future they will feel more confident and thus be more motivated. Don't water down the lessons or making them "easier", just find steps to make them possible. 

In conclusion
     This is "laziness" is now a big problem in American schools (and well, everywhere) that needs to be fixed. I don't have the answer, you might not have the answer but we need to work to find one. I find it enraging, yet so sad.....what type of life is ahead of you if you're too lazy for Kindergarten. 


--Ashlee. 

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Watercolor In Highschool Art


Recently, I created and taught a watercolor lesson to local high school art students based on the following enduring ideas:
Throughout time and across cultures, artists have learned and practiced techniques to employ in their artwork.
Artists use their skills to inspire others.

Here are some photos taken during the lesson!


Monday, November 7, 2011

Architecture

I'm currently working on an architecture lesson to present to my Teaching High School Art Education class, and I just had to share all of the interesting resources I'm finding!

Build The Tallest Tower (Motivation Tool)

Tallest Tower With Index Cards, Tape, Glue (Motivation Tool)

Teaching 911 (Use for a studio piece?)

Monday, October 24, 2011

Irving Penn Quote

Sensitive people faced with the prospect of a camera portrait put on a face they think is one they would like to show the world. ...Very often what lies behind the facade is rare and more wonderful than the subject knows or dares to believe

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Amazing Young Drawing Artist

"She only took up drawing in 2009, and although she had never taken any art classes she produced some stunning pieces. Rajacenna was immediately approached by an American publisher who wanted to feature her drawings in a book called ‘American pencil portraits 2″ which contained drawings by some of the most talented people in the art world. She became a professional artist at the age of 17 and has since then created incredibly realistic portraits of celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Lady Gaga or Justin Bieber. On her official website it says “according to experts, there is nobody at such a young age with such a talent for drawing realistic portraits like she does.” and looking at her works I’m inclined to agree." By Spooky
Find the rest of this story here

Find Rajacenna's Website here.


This could be a great motivator for other young artists. You could also hold a critique on her choice of images. How could her artwork be more meaningful? What does her choice of American popculture icons say?


Photography Quote

"The relationship between what we see and what we know is never settled."

James Elkins: Thinking about Photography